IMHO Windows 8 is a success. It has made me to rethink my plan of buying an iPad this 2012 holiday season. By next thanks giving, if Apple is not coming out with a competitive product to this (like touch based MacBook Air which runs both tablet apps and regular Apple OS productivity apps for ~$1,000 to $1,300), I feel it’s going to be a tough sail for Apple there after. Already they are facing some kind of resistance like this with iPhone 5 and Samsung S III.

As any normal tech adult, I have my laptop and couple of smartphones. I was thinking of buying iPad this holiday (iPad 4th Generation with new thunderbolt connector) so that I can consider that as a good tech investment for ~ next 2 years from now. After seeing Windows 8 touch ultrabook / laptops in action, it made me to think whether my iPad will be a high tech one for the next 2 years. New Windows 8 H/W and the speed at which the new models come looks promising for both entertainment (windows 8 UI touch based) and office work (Windows 8 desktop mode). I think Microsoft Windows RT hardware soon will lose its glory if OEMs start selling 10″ touch ultrabooks with Windows 8 Pro software and slimmed down Lenovo yoga like hardware profile with touch screen in the same price range.

I may settle down for iPad Mini soon with their next update because current screen resolution doesn’t crave for $329. Next update may come with more power or like current big iPad it may come with 2 variants – current iPad Mini will sell for ~$250 and the new upgraded one will sell for $329. If iPad2 sells for $300 then I may decide to buy that.

Android tablets are evolving faster – price and specs are diving in opposite directions pretty fast. If there is no economy slump then for next thanks giving (2013), current hardware will be considered as simply show pieces. In my view, ASUS transformer Android tablet series is in this category – good hardware but it may be having the crown few days / months. We have seen Nexus 7 8GB, 16GB and 32GB variants pretty fast. If Google releases a ~9″ inch hardware with a screen resolution between Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 and the price range ~$300 then it may kill all other OEMs including Amazon in my view.